Should halal and kosher methods of slaughter be banned?

[Viva]! spoke to workers who have witnessed or assisted with religious slaughter. Here is a typical view: 'No-one will convince me that it's painless. As for the claims that animals die instantly - utter nonsense. It can take a very long time and sometimes they're disembowelled before they're even unconscious.'1 The problem with bureaucracies - and that is what the bodies administering halal and shechita (kosher) slaughter are - is that they become intransigent and regulations are set in stone. But fortunately, over 80 per cent of Muslims do accept prestunning and obviously don't fear for their eternal salvation. 'Whoever is kind to the creatures of God is kind to himself' doesn't exactly fit with slashing their throats, does it? Perhaps it's no accident that slaughtering animals is entirely forbidden in your most holy of places, Mecca. Animal Aid's 'Behind Closed Doors' report recorded a breach of welfare rules in eight out of the nine slaughter houses that they monitored. Why, with so many other animal rights issues, focus on the methods of Muslims and Jews who run, as [Robin Hargreaves] conceded 'a very tight ship'? Intolerance and prejudice comes in many forms.